I’m 6’5", race XC, race gravel and presumably part of the target demographic for this. But I’d be happy for the UCI to ban it and hopefully take this off the table. Stop Big Wheel before it gets rolling!
I just don’t want to deal with another standard that will ripple through bikes, wheels, tires, components, … and require another huge investment for a marginal gain. In the mean time, I’m not buying another bike until this all gets resolved. Last time around, it took years for 26", 27.5" and 29" all to play out, and an even longer time for the designers to get 29" geometry dialled.
I think ultimately the brands will manufacture what their racers or testing will determine to be faster. Pros don’t have to deal with their bikes or changing standars. They just need to be fast around a course. If 32" wheels are better/faster (and they seem to be faster) I’m sure the market will pivot production to that.
I’d argue 29" was already a compromise in some areas for many smaller riders and the market didn’t cater to those either, because 29" is faster than 27.5 and 26. You need different molds for different frame sizes anyway so the idea of designing XS-S around 27.5", M-ML around 29" and L-XL around 32" isn’t too crazy. Because bigger wheels roll faster apparently and racers want to go fast, no one does it.
It’s not like big-cycling is forcing you to buy anything new or sell your old stuff. I don’t believe 29" or 700C wheels will be gone like 26" because of the fact the UCI banned wheels bigger than 700mm in diameter for road racing. Boost hubs will be available so in theory 29" wheels don’t just seize to exist, when brands start launching their 32" bikes.
Your logic is irrefutable but the majority of the field is wearing white shoes for style so logic isn’t a strong point of the cycling consumer these days.
Might be there soon. Apparently UCI discussions to ban 32” wheels for gravel. Which may or may not affect many people in the US as I don’t see Unbound or other races taking any action. But it might cause some brands to ditch their plans to make 32” bikes.
The problem lies if a brand like Canyon or Specialized then stop any development of 32” Wheel bikes. Sure the US can do whatever they want and Unbound allows the 32” wheels. But if bikes don’t exist that’s another issue. You might have some smaller brands make them. But a UCI ban would likely sway the bigger brands to avoid them.
I don’t think a UCI ban would be enough unless some of the big mass start events (Unbound, Traka, etc.) banned them as well. If 32’s prove to be a significantly faster, there will be more sales demand for 32’s than 700c regardless of whether 32’s are allowed in UCI races.
That’s probably not going work unless there’s a larger tire width/height difference since the diameter is so much relatively larger.
700c from 650b is +38mm so 19mm change in BB height etc. Could be accommodated partially by larger 650b tires.
32" from 700c is 64mm so 32mm change in BB height etc. That’s huge, I couldn’t make 26" wheels with 2.2 tires work in a CX frame designed around 700cx42mm, the BB height ended up way too low.
Good Here’s a gift article for you from Escape Collective: 32" wheels are challenging decades of bike design assumptions (gift link, so should work for everyone) with framebuilder Darren Baum talking about how frame geometry needs to change to get the most out of 32" wheels. For me at least, I’m feeling better about the new 700c gravel frame I just got, as I think it will take multiple frame generations to get 32" wheel frame geometry optimized
And on the topic of the UCI banning 32" wheels in gravel: at least in the US, as someone said, unless organizers like Lifetime follow suit, the UCI ban won’t mean sh*t.
This would be one of my hesitations of getting a 32” wheel bike right now. Not quite apples to apples, but kind of reminds me of when drop bar disc brake bikes were first arriving. They were quick release (and post mount). A couple years later the frames moved on to better features. Anytime there is a big shift in a platform it seems like it takes brands a few years to figure out the best way to do things
It was an interesting read, particularly about the chain stay length. I’ve always been a fan of short chainstays because of the assumption that it meant the bike was more snappy and racey. But now I kinda wonder if this assumption I’ve had all these years is wrong and a longer chainstay could make for a better overall riding experience
I think @LookingProGoingSlow has it nailed though, the bigger brands won’t bother making a 32" race gravel bike if the UCI bans them. I kinda feel like they will ban them, it’s a close enough discipline to road that they probably wouldn’t want them to have different wheel sizes.